UK industrial production increased the most in eight months in February, triple higher than expectations, driven by manufacturing output which hit a three-year high and supporting expectations of strong GDP growth in the first quarter.

Industrial production rose 0.9pc in February compared to the previous month, beating expectations of a 0.3pc rise. On an annual basis production rose 2.7pc in February, compared with the same month in 2013, ahead of forecasts of 2.2pc growth, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The largest monthly contribution to growth came from the manufacturing sector, which grew 1pc in February compared with January, marking its third consecutive monthly rise, and well ahead of the forecasted growth of 0.3pc. Year-on-year manufacturing was up 3.8pc, beating expectations of a 3.1pc rise.

The growth in manufacturing was driven by pharmaceuticals, recovering from a dip in the previous month, as well as transport equipment, food products, beverages and tobacco, the ONS said.

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"All manufacturing indicators are lining up for a strong first quarter growth rate, highlighting that industry remains a vital cog in the UK’s continuing recovery," said Lee Hopley, chief economist at the manufacturers' organisation EEF.

Aside from manufacturing there was also a boost from the water supply, sewerage & waste management sector which grew 8.5pc on a monthly basis and mining & quarrying which rose 0.2pc.

The only decrease was in electricity, gas, steam & air conditioning output, which decreased by 8.8pc between February 2013 and February 2014. The ONS said this was due to the average temperature in February 2014 being warmer than February 2013.

&lt;noframes&gt;Interactive chart: Contribution to production growth month on same month a year ago&lt;/noframes&gt;

The data adds to evidence that the UK economy continued to expand in the first quarter. A survey by the British Chambers of Commerce today showed six key manufacturing balances, including investment plans, had hit all-time highs in the first quarter and services were strong too.

Jeremy Cook, chief economist World First, said he maintained his view that the UK's economy would grow by 0.7pc in the first three months of the year.

“Industrial production has risen by the most in 8 months in February, backing up recent sentiment surveys from the manufacturing sector that support thoughts of strong growth through Q1," he said.

“PMIs from the manufacturing sector have shown that employer intentions have risen well in Q1 with continual improvements in output and employment leading to continual market confidence. These official output numbers would suggest that these feelings are being materially backed up."

Samuel Tombs, UK economist at Capital Economics, added that the "strong" increase in overall production in February "sets industry up to make a robust contribution" to overall GDP growth in the first quarter.

"This rise would exceed the 0.5pc quarterly increase seen in Q4 and would therefore mean that the sector’s contribution to overall GDP growth was slightly bigger in Q1 (0.07pp) than in Q4 (0.14pp)," he said.

"What’s more, the continued strength of the latest manufacturing surveys suggests that a stronger outturn in March is perhaps more likely. Accordingly, the latest industrial production figures provide reassurance that the economic recovery has remained strong and broad-based."

Alex Edwards, head of the corporate desk at UKForex, said the "very impressive numbers" would increase expectations of an early rate hike by the Bank of England, even as early as next Janaury or February, and "certainly before the UK general election in May 2015".

"Although the UK PMIs were weaker than expected last week, these, too, were largely strong numbers" he said.

Despite the recent strong growth, manufacturing remains 8.2pc smaller than it was when British overall economic output hit its peak in early 2008.